Is hospice a good stepping stone??

Cuddleswithpuddles · Mar 20, 2012

How would hospice ruin your chances of a med-surg or ICU job?

Perpetual Student · Mar 21, 2012

Hospice is solid nursing. Hospice nurses have my utmost respect. Anyone who looks down on hospice nurses is a complete idiot in my book.

Honestly, I am not sure hospice is appropriate for a new grad, at least without some sort of pertinent experience to increase confidence and ability to communicate effectively. It's one of the few specialties I'd say that about, too. The only other one that comes to mind immediately would be flight/critical care transport. There's so much responsibility and need for confidence, and comfort (you've got to be comfortable yourself to be able to give the patients and families the support they need).

MadpeysRN · Mar 21, 2012

I have often thought of hospice nursing, along with travel, wound care, and burn nursing, but I was thinking I would need more med-surg and ICU experience before I drifted off into a more specialty area though. I think it would be an honor to be apart of the patients life as it ends.

@cuddleswithpuddles-I don't know that's why I asked. Because Hospice is about comfort and support, more than cures. So I was thinking treating symptoms with pain relief would be a lot different than needed to know what to do if someone's blood sugar was dropping or they were tachycardic or some other medical emergency.

MadpeysRN · Mar 21, 2012

duplicate

Merlyn · Mar 21, 2012

I am afraid of all these GN's not being able to find employment. I have a pretty much gauranteed job at hospice, although not my first choice. I won't be picky but I don't want to ruin my chances of getting into med/surg and eventually ICU.

I don't know. Hospice is something else altogether. It requires plenty of understanding of the end of life process. Lots of psych, and family nursing. When the time of death comes you may be blamed for not doing enough to save the patient. A lot of tears on your part. I still remember a night. I had been with this family for a week. The patient had been going bad all night. At the end of my shift I had to get my time slip signed. I went up to the wife of the dying man. As she took my slip she said,"In all probability I wouldn't see you again." I looked into the eyes of a woman who had spent 52 years married to the same man and said, "In all probability you wouldn't." I went out in my car and I cried for 20 minutes. This is what you will face as a hospice nurse. If you can take this there is a good chance that you will get Med/Surg. You will get a deeper understanding and compassion for the persons that we call patients.

LemonIndiscretion · Mar 21, 2012

The hospice nurses I met at the inpatient facility where my mom died were AMAZING. They knew exactly the right things to say at the right time. My mom had cancer and died from a bowel obstruction and it was the worst death imaginable but these nurses gave me moments of comfort with their honest and thoughtful words. We were only there for a week but I laughed and cried in front of them, and felt comfortable expressing any emotion at any time... because they made us comfortable. They also treated my mom with the most respect and gentle loving care. I would love to be a hospice nurse one day, but as a senior in my nursing program I know I am not ready yet. But that may be because I have new wounds that will take time to heal. If you are unsure could you shadow one of the hospice nurses and tour a hospice inpatient facility? I know they give families tours all the time maybe you could get a better idea by checking it out.

MadpeysRN · Mar 21, 2012

I don't know. Hospice is something else altogether. It requires plenty of understanding of the end of life process. Lots of psych, and family nursing. When the time of death comes you may be blamed for not doing enough to save the patient. A lot of tears on your part. I still remember a night. I had been with this family for a week. The patient had been going bad all night. At the end of my shift I had to get my time slip signed. I went up to the wife of the dying man. As she took my slip she said,"In all probability I wouldn't see you again." I looked into the eyes of a woman who had spent 52 years married to the same man and said, "In all probability you wouldn't." I went out in my car and I cried for 20 minutes. This is what you will face as a hospice nurse. If you can take this there is a good chance that you will get Med/Surg. You will get a deeper understanding and compassion for the persons that we call patients.

thanks for the advice. I think it would be a honor to be apart of that time with a family when it comes time to say good bye, however being able to handle it emotionally is another story. I guess I will never know unless I try.

MadpeysRN · Mar 21, 2012

The hospice nurses I met at the inpatient facility where my mom died were AMAZING. They knew exactly the right things to say at the right time. My mom had cancer and died from a bowel obstruction and it was the worst death imaginable but these nurses gave me moments of comfort with their honest and thoughtful words. We were only there for a week but I laughed and cried in front of them, and felt comfortable expressing any emotion at any time... because they made us comfortable. They also treated my mom with the most respect and gentle loving care. I would love to be a hospice nurse one day, but as a senior in my nursing program I know I am not ready yet. But that may be because I have new wounds that will take time to heal. If you are unsure could you shadow one of the hospice nurses and tour a hospice inpatient facility? I know they give families tours all the time maybe you could get a better idea by checking it out.

Good idea, I should go shadow! However, I still don't think hospice would be my first choice. As a GN, I think it would require some seasoning first.

bsnanat2 · Mar 21, 2012

I now work in an acute care facility, but did my senior practicum at a hospice facility. It was one of the best things that ever happened to me. I've always liked psych and it gave me a chance to flex my psych muscles and to learn a lot about human behavior, both of the dying and the family of the dying. My time at hospice improved my assessment skills exponentially and has served me well in the hospital setting. Based on what I learned from the hospice nurses, I've been able to ascertain that someone was beginning to "circle the drain" and one pt. that some thought was 'on the way out' wasn't anywhere near it. No one is 100% but hospice nurses almost have a superpower when comes to determining how long someone will last or if they'll "make out the night." Families of hospital patients, in small ways, mimic the behavior of hospice families. During my time at hospice I took care of trach patients, gave all manner of medication and that time made me more than comfortable giving pain medications. As I begin my NP training, I've decided to make sure I work some hospice rotations into my clinicals. I understand wanting to get that 'one year of hospital experience' but hospice is great. Get certified, document your skills, keep up with continuing ed and you'll be fine. Maybe you can find a prn job somewhere to help get some of those inpatient skills?